How it all Ends
by Jenny7
Summary: An Alliance cruiser stumbles upon an abandoned Firefly Transport and tries to piece together the final hours before its end.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Firefly or the cast.

Summary: An Alliance cruiser stumbles upon an abandoned Firefly Transport and tries to piece together the final hours before its end.

Notes: Jaylee and Mal/Inara may become involved at some point. I plan to make this a several chapter story, this being the prologue.

How It All Ends

"Alright Rafferty, tell me you have some intelligent reason for waking me at this hour." He walked in, hair perfect despite his claims of sleep, and took his place next to the young officer in front of the monitor.

"Distress call sir. We found a trace of a beacon and followed it. Its an old Firefly class 03-K64." Rafferty stood with his hands behind his back, staring up at the ranking officer with admiration.

"You said to notify you if we came upon a Firefly transport sir." Another man chimed in. He was shorter and stood in perfect posture. The other officer rolled his eyes at the obvious ass-kissing going on before him.

"That I did." The General put his hand on the young mans shoulder and smiled. "Thank you Tucker." He leaned on the panel with his two hands and stared at the ship, swinging carelessly through the nothing of space. "Any response?"

"Nothing sir." Rafferty stepped in front of Tucker. "We've been trying for approximately quarter to an hour now, since we found the beacon." He paused, looking unsure of his next statement. "Do you figure it was abandoned, sir?"

The general looked up at the young officer and sighed. "Could be. Or could be they're just hiding."

"Or dead sir." Tucker chimed in, as usual. The other two men looked at him, almost as if they'd forgotten he was there.

"Yes Tucker, could be that too." The man moved back from the panel and clapped his hands together once. "Alright then, guess we go in. Prep the air lock for attachment, I'll go suit up." He headed towards the door. "Rafferty, you're coming with me. Tucker, you stay here. Man the ship while I'm out."

"But sir…" Tucker interrupted. "I feel that I could much better serve the alliance by exploring the ship, sir." Rafferty rolled his eyes again. The general frowned, deep in thought.

"Alright then. You boys get suited up. Tell Donaldson he's in charge." Rafferty hooked eyes with Tucker, shaking his head in embarrassment for the boy. He was young and new to the force, didn't know how to suck up without making it blatantly obvious.

"What?" The man asked blindly, leading the way into the storage room where the suits were located.


	2. The Way We Were

Disclaimer: I do not own Firefly or Serenity.

Note: 2nd in the 'How it all Ends' series.

The Way We Were

Five Hours Earlier.

Firefly Transport 'Serenity'.

They sat around the lunch table, handing bowls of meat and vegetables to one another hurriedly. It wasn't often that the crew got a good meal composed of real foods. Other then the food, though, it was their usual dinnertime ritual. Discuss the upcoming job, tell a few jokes, laugh at one of Rivers quirky remarks, and then take their turns in cleaning up and heading off to bed. It was just another day on Serenity, and just another family meal.

"Hey Shepherd, pass the potatoes will ya?" Jayne's voice echoed throughout the dining hall, alerting all to the fact that he was short his share of potatoes.

"The proper way of asking would require use of the word please accompanied in turn by the words 'thank you', and also a possible friendly handshake?" All of the people around the table turned to stare at River, all equally amused by her recommendations.

Jayne made a face that resembled the one Wash had that one time he attempted to brush his teeth with the antibiotic ointment instead of the toothpaste. Kaylee giggled and Jayne looked at her like he had no idea what was so gorram funny. Simon smiled at River, barely able to hold in his laughter. It was obvious that his thoughts were along the same lines.

When the others were quiet and staring at River, she made a final observation. Putting her hands to her temples and widening her eyes in annoyance she continued. "I'm surrounded by Savages." This was followed by a spec of quiet where everyone tried to decide whether they should be amused or offended. Finally, Mal broke into a large grin, one he rarely wore except for these special meal time moments, and stood up.

"Well alright then. Figure that's as good a reason as any to drink up." Mal raised his glass in the air, waiting for the others to do the same. "To bein' the most down right dirty savages this side of Whitefall!"

"Here here!" Jayne shouted and swallowed this entire drink in one shot. The others, with the exception of the good doctor and Inara of course, raised their glasses in unison and took slightly smaller sips of their own. The young girl looked rather annoyed, taking her fork and poking at her potatoes like they were alien spawn. Simon mulled over her, trying to convince her to eat just one more bite.

Kaylee put on her best smile and turned the conversation in a new direction. "So Captain, I hear we're dropping down on Jiangyin tomorrow. Serenity could really use a new…"

"Save it little Kaylee, if it costs anything more then a red cent I reckon it'll have to wait." Kaylee huffed and put down her fork, still full of food.

"But Captain…" She pleaded, flashing the pout that could kill a thousand men in one stand.

"No Kaylee. Don't have the coin to spare." He stopped when the pout increased, and now Zoe and Inara were both looking at him like he'd just kicked a puppy. "Do we wanna eat or do we wanna buy parts that ain't needed just yet?" He addressed this to the entire table. Jayne looked down at his food, smiling at Kaylee's obvious bargaining techniques.

"I vote for eating. Who votes for eating?" Wash raised his hand, leaving the others rolling their eyes at his antics.

"Oh Well honey, I guess you'll be eating tonight instead of…" Zoe began. The Shepherd cleared his throat, trying his best not to listen to the inane conversation going on around him.

"Stop the presses! I hereby change my vote." Wash smacked his hand down on the table for emphasis. He looked over at Mal apologetically. "Sorry Mal. The wife has spoken."

Mal looked around the table, noticing that particular stare that Inara gave him whenever he was being a heartless bastard. Hers was joined with similar stares from the rest of the crew, with the exception of Jayne, who was still smiling fiendishly, and Simon who was preoccupied with cutting up another piece of meat for River. He sighed and sat back.

"Alright Kaylee, one part!" Kaylee bobbed up and down in her chair and clapped her hands.

"Thanks Captain. That was real shiny of ya." She smiled her big grin as Jayne reached over and mussed her hair affectionately.

"Yea yea, real shiny of me." He muttered under his breath, staring at Inara the entire time. She had full control over him and everyone at the table knew it. One stare from her could change his mind in a nanosecond. Simon cleared his throat, effectively breaking the tension and making it clear that he was ready to speak.

" Captain, I could use some more medical supplies too. Will my services be needed on this run or am I free to go as I please?" Mal looked over at him, the boy had become somewhat crew-worthy lately. He and his crazy little sister were fittin' right in with the rest of them .

"Won't be needin' ya this time around doctor, strictly business. Stay close though, never do know when this clan will be needin' a good doctor." He cut up his meat and stuffed one into his mouth.

"Damn right, the way you get us into trouble." Jayne remarked, spitting mashed potatoes out of his mouth as he spoke. His words were followed by gruff chuckle. Mal stared up at him with his usual 'remember that day in the airlock' stare.

"Huh…Don't hear you complainin' when pay day comes around." Mal remarked, taking a bite of his food. "Course if this arrangements too risky for ya…"

"Didn't say that." Jayne remarked immediately, his eyes completely serious and somewhat mean.

Zoe observed the situation. "Don't bite the hand that feeds ya Jayne."

"Right because rabies is awfully contagious, especially when it comes to biting things, right Jayne?" Jayne stood up, on the defense at Wash's comment.

"Say that again, a little bit closer this time. Dong ma?" Wash layed back in his chair, hands out in defense. Inara rolled her eyes at the nonsense going on around her. She did have to agree with River this time around.

"Whoa whoa, I haven't gotten my rabies shot yet sparky!" Simon laughed silently in the corner, he was a big fan of Wash's Jayne jokes. Jayne was fuming though, and everyone knew he was about to snap.

"Gorillas can snap a persons arm in two when they're angry." River commented, causing Simon to laugh all the more. Kaylee just gave her a wide-eyed stare and then looked back at Jayne, standing up next to her.

"Baby, I think that's enough." Zoe warned her husband, who tended to get carried away with the quips. He was a wonderful man as far as she was concerned, but there wasn't a spec of fighter in him.

"Aww but I was just getting…" Wash began. He was interrupted when a loud blaring alarm sounded into the room. He calmed himself down and smiled in embarrassment. "I was just getting down to the bridge to fly this magnificent ship." He raised his hands in a gesture to Serenity and stood to leave. Mal and Zoe followed not too far behind, worried expressions on their faces.

"Should we go with them?" Shephard Book asked, clearly unsure of what was the right thing to do in this situation. Jayne sat back down and leaned back in his chair.

"Naw, ain't nothing to worry 'bout preacher."

"Well, maybe I outta…" Kaylee stood to get up, Jayne put out his arm to stop her.

"Just relax little Kaylee, they've got it covered."

"It's ok. Mal would let us know if there was anything to worry about." Inara took her napkin from her lap and put it on the table neatly, a large contrast to the others.

Suddenly, Mal's voice projected into the room via the com.

"Need everyone down to the bridge on the double. Seems we've found ourselves a spec of trouble."

The six remaining crew looked wide-eyed at each other, all except for Jayne of course.

"Figures. Man can't get a decent dinner on this boat." He grabbed the remaining biscuit off of his plate and stood up. The others followed his lead, heading towards the bridge with mixed emotions.


	3. The Beginning of the End

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em, that's Joss's department.

Notes: I want to thank everyone for their suggestions and comments. I do take them all into consideration and I appreciate everyone's honesty. Please continue to read and review, and I hope you all enjoy my visions and ideas for how this story will continue and eventually end.

"The Beginning of the End"

The six marched in, one by one, as if going to their doom.

"What seems to be the trouble Mal?" Shepard Book looked on in concern. The captain looked up at the rest of the crew and put his hands on his hips, the usual dramatic gesture he used when there were signs of real trouble.

"Is it alliance?" Simon appeared from behind the Shepard. His face showed all colors of concern as he swallowed a thick lump in his throat. Mal paced around until he was back facing the window looking out into space.

"Nope, don't figure it is." He looked to the left of Serenity and observed a small transport ship. It appeared to be tailing them, but hadn't made a move to communicate yet.

"Reavers?" Kaylee's question came out in more of a whimper then words. Jayne moved behind her, a look of fear crossing his face.

"Ain't getting' me anywhere near no gorram Reavers!" Jayne moved his hand to his gun holster and stared suspiciously at the small ship through the window.

"Hold it Sparky." Wash quipped as he punched a few buttons on the control panel. "I'm not getting any radiation readings out of the ordinary here. No, these seem to be just regular old folk." Zoe stood behind her husband and put her hands on his shoulders.

"Ain't no regular folk who tail a transport." Mal mumbled, placing his hands on the panel and looking out into the black void outside. Suddenly, the small screen on the panel lit up, indicating that someone was trying to contact the crew of Serenity.

"Guess again sir." Zoe gestured towards the screen. It read the name Barnabus Reily and showed a picture of a gruff looking man with a long brown beard and a leather jacket. Mal looked down at the screen and his eyed widened in surprise. He gestured for the rest of the crew to stand back and pushed the button to answer the call. The mans face appeared on the screen and he smiled up at Mal, showing his missing teeth.

"Hi Mal. Been a while ay?" He laughed and quickly began to cough in the middle of it. Mal stared back at the screen and smiled.

"Howdy there Barnabus. Good to see your face again." He wore a friendly smile, the one he wore whenever he was more suspicious then friendly.

"Yours too old friend. Is that there a bald spot I see?" Mal ignored the chuckles coming from Wash and Zoe to his left.

"Reckon it ain't as big as that gap tween your teeth there buddy." Mal did his best to make his laugh sound real enough, casting an annoyed glance at the rest of the crew behind him. "So what brings you to these parts Barnabus?"

"Well Mal, I'm looking' for someone to transport some goods for me. Nothing too troublesome I reckon. Heard you were in the business and figured I'd look ya up." The man pulled on his beard as he talked, providing a distraction from his mangled hair and missing teeth.

Mal looked over at Zoe, considering. "Well now Barnabus, reckon we're a bit full right now. Got some medical supplies and such to get to Ariel in a day or two."

"But Mal…" Jayne chimed in. Mal raised his hand to shush the man's objections.

"Don't gotta fool with me Mal." The man laughed. "I know you too well for that. You working for the alliance? Not in a million moons." He paused to pull his beard again. "Unless you got objections with working with an old war buddy, well, I figure it ain't no problem for me."

Mal seemed to consider this for a moment, causing the man to become impatient.

"Aw Come on Mal, 'member that time I saved your hide when we was fightin' on Hera? Wouldn't no one else jump in front of a bullet to save your pee-goo." He paused. "Cept maybe for Zoe, now she was a…" Zoe stepped in front of the screen and smiled at the old haggered man.

"What were you saying Barnabus?" Wash stood up next to her and put on his tough guy facod.

"Yea!" He yelled out in determination. "What she said." Mal pushed both of them aside and addressed the man on the screen.

"Alright Barnabus. Always in the mood to talk business. See ya in a spec." He immediately shut off the screen and turned to the others. They all looked back at him, waiting for the downside to this new development.

"What is it sir?" Zoe approached him with uncertainty. Mal looked up at her, deep in thought suddenly.

"Somethan ain't right." He started towards the door. "Jayne, Zoe, arm yourselves and meet me down in the airlock. Wash need you to stay here at the controls. Rest a ya…" He turned and gestured to Simon and River, "specially you two, keep yourselves hidden. Somethan ain't right with this." He continued down the corridor with his usual panicked determination.

"Alright, bought time we had a good ruttin fight." Jayne took the gun out of his belt and cocked it. He smiled, like he only did when there was violence involved, and followed Mal. Zoe kissed her husband and did the same, leaving the others to watch them go.

This wasn't the first time they had seen trouble like this, but there was something different about the look on Mal's face this time. It was a look that said if they weren't careful, it might be their last.

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Alliance Cruiser

Present Day

Three men stood in suits, awaiting the opening of the airlock that would lead them onto the apparent deserted transport ship. One was a larger man, confident in his appearance and ability to get the job done. The other two, lesser of men some would say, stood behind him. One looked nervous, but ready to face what was to come. The other, a mere rookie at heart, held onto his weapon a bit tighter then the other two.

And when the airlock opened they were faced with an empty abyss, an empty ship in all appearance.

"Alright boys, lets go." The general gestured for the other two to follow him as he stepped aboard. Their steps were slow and deliberate, the only way they could be in the heavy suits they were wearing. The ship creaked when they walked, causing the rookie to fall back a step before continuing on.

The other young man looked at the rookie, laughing at him silently. "Sure you can handle this, Tucker? If you plan to turn back now's the time." Tucker stopped, turned around slightly to look at the way they had come. Before he could answer the other man, the general's voice boomed through their earpieces.

"OK. She looks dead to me." He turned and looked at the other men. "You boys go up, see if you find anything useful. I'll keep going this way." He gestured toward an area that looked like the common area of the ship. The man started walking without looking back. Rafferty looked at his new companion and rolled his eyes.

"Just try to keep up." He started up the stairs. "And have your weapon ready, just in case we encounter any ghosts." He said the last words in a teasing manner, but the young rookie was in no laughing mood.

He swallowed a lump in his throat and followed the other man upstairs.


	4. An Eye for an Eye

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. That's Joss's department.

Notes: Warning: There will be death in this chapter and some implied violence. Nothing too terrible though.

"An Eye for an Eye"

They stood at the airlock, three members of Serenity's crew fully armed and ready for anything. Mal stood in front of the other two, ready to meet his so-called old war buddy. Mal knew better, better then Zoe anyway. He knew that Barnabus Reily very rarely came calling on an old friend unless he had some revenge to discuss with him. Mal figured he'd crossed Barnabus once or twice in their time and this was his revenge for it. Besides, he couldn't shake that funny feelin' in his stomach that told him his crew was in danger. He didn't like that feelin' one bit.

Zoe stood next to Mal, not figuring that anything was different with this particular day. She knew that her captain could be paranoid and tended to worry about Serenity and her crew much more then was necessary most times. There was something about his eyes though; something that told her he really believed they were in danger now. Even though they had no definite proof that Barnabus was here to cause them any trouble, the captain's eyes said differently. Zoe knew Barnabus briefly in the war, not as well as the captain by any means. They'd shared a trench for awhile before Barnabus began to forget what he was fighting for and took the easy way home. He surrendered himself to the Alliance, eventually working for them for awhile before striking out on his own to pursue other illegal prospects. Apparently those prospects had landed him back here in the black, and now he was coming aboard their boat. Zoe understood the captain's worries. Barnabus was a loose canon and his loyalties lied nowhere that anyone could be sure of. She prepared herself for the worst, just in case.

Jayne had his hand planted firmly on his gun belt, fingers nimble and ready to pull a trigger. If Jayne was anything he was a good mercenary, ready to do his job and use his gun without question. He figured Mal was just being paranoid again but didn't dare say it. The ships captain was wound too tight for Jayne to go down that road now; he figured that might just land him in the airlock again. This Barnabus guy didn't seem so bad, but Jayne didn't trust anyone by nature. Except for this crew, some of 'em weren't so bad. For the first time he'd begun to sleep without a gun underneath his pillow. Maybe that didn't mean much to some people, and maybe the others couldn't see his change of attitude, but this was a big thing for Jayne. So standing there, waiting to see what came next, he felt himself tense and ready.

And then the hatch opened. There stood the scraggly looking man, a big grin across his face.

"Mal! So good to see you again old buddy!" He held out his arms as if he was expecting some sort of epic welcoming. He came up to the captain, making Mal mighty nervous and jittery. He waited for a hug that never came and then a quizzical look came over his face. "What? No hug?"

A moment later Mal was crouched over in pain. He'd been punched in the gut and kicked in the face. Jayne and Zoe moved to spring into action, guns out and aimed at Mal's old friend. Their movements were stopped by a familiar voice.

"So we meet again, Mal Reynolds. It has been too long, I believe." The accent was unmistakable. The man behind it was too. Jayne's jaw dropped and Zoe's eyes widened.

"Howdy there Niska. So sorry we couldn't keep in touch." Mal choked out the words from his position on the ground. He didn't dare stand up after seeing the many armed henchmen Niska had brought along with him. Ten men were pointing ten guns at the three crewmembers. Zoe raised her weapon in the air, a sign of surrender. Jayne was reluctant, but Zoe gave him a glare that told him it was the wise thing to do. He lowered his gun and raised his hands, obviously very angry and confused.

"What is it they say when two people have not met in so long? Ah, yes, long time no see. Well now I see you and I am much obliged to have been invited aboard your ship." The small man paced around in front of the crew members, occasionally looking over at his own men with a wicked grin. "Or, should I thank your old friend for that privilege?" Barnabus looked over at Niska and smiled a big toothless grin.

"That mean I get my reward now?" He had his hands out, eager to accept what was coming to him. Mal shook his head and smiled. He knew what the reward was going to be. Niska laughed and looked at his henchmen, who laughed as well.

"Why, yes. I believe it is time to pay you for their services. Boys?" He held out his hand, giving the signal to the men behind him. Bullets rained throughout the cargo bay and in moments the scraggly old man was dead and bloody on the floor. Zoe closed her eyes, not wanting to look at the corpse at her feet. Jayne stood there, cursing at how stupid a man had to be to expect anything concrete as money from Niska.

"I know that we know each other well enough, Mr. Reynolds, so I am going to be very- how do you say?-blunt with you. I am here to take back what was taken from me. Do you remember the last time we met?" Mal didn't answer. He just stared at the man, stared so hard his eyes looked like they would crack open in rage. Two henchmen had moved behind Jayne and Zoe and had force them to their knees on the ground. Niska gave a single nod to the man behind Mal and suddenly Mal had been slapped in the back of the head with a pistol. He was bleeding profusely now and obviously in a lot of pain. He still didn't answer Niska.

"Well it seems I may have to help you to remember, yes?" Niska stood directly in front of him, looking down at Mal in disgust. "You did not fulfill your obligations to me. You killed some of my very best men. But most of all, you did not show me the respect that we agreed upon." Niska was angry, his eyes burned with the heat of his rage, and he looked straight into Mal's eyes. "On earth-that-was, there was a saying: An eye for an eye. I will take from you what you have taken from me, Mr. Reynolds. And I will do it as slowly and painfully as I can."

Mal was angry. He was furious at Niska and the man behind him and Barnabus. But mostly, he was angry at himself. He'd put his crew in a dangerous place once again, and for the life of him he couldn't see a way out of this one. In his anger, he muttered four simple words. "Over my dead body." Niska smiled and stood up. He turned from Mal and looked towards the airlock.

"That can be arranged." He turned quickly back to Mal, a gleam in his eyes. "But not just yet, I'm afraid. There are others on this ship, yes? Women, maybe even children? Well I have always believed in the idea that women and children should go first, after all it is the proper way." He paused and smiled. "Even in death."

Mal's face twisted into a rage that he hadn't shown in years. Jayne took his rage one step further, standing and knocking the man behind him down. He reached down to his ankle and pulled out a small gun that he'd strapped to himself. He aimed it at Niska and pulled the trigger, sending a bullet flying at the man's head. The bullet hit the wall behind Niska, as he had anticipated this move and stepped aside swiftly. But the other bullets, the ones fired from the henchmen's guns, didn't miss. Jayne took three to his back and stomach, sending his face down to the ground. Zoe clenched her eyes and stayed where she was. She'd seen enough of these situations in the war, seen enough men go down in the heat of anger. There was nothing she could do for him now.

Niska laughed and looked at Mal. "Your efforts are useless I am afraid." He knelt down next to Mal, face to face with him, and sneered. "I promise you Mal Reynolds, this is the end for you. There will be no one left to rescue you this time." Mal breathed heavily, managing just enough strength to spit in Niska's face. Niska immediately jumped back and showed a rage like he hadn't had before. "Kill her."

Two words, said so quickly that no one had time to think about them. Shots were fired and Zoe was hit at every angle. She had gotten a few shots off in defense of herself but in the end she went down in grace and dignity.

Mal thought that it was over. He thought that they would kill him next and get it over with. At least that's what he hoped. He knew Niska better then that, but he had nothing left but hope and he refused to give that up, not as long as Serenity was still flying.

"Take them away. It is only civilized to clean up after ourselves, right boys?" The henchmen grunted in agreement and began to move the two fallen crewmembers. Niska moved towards the stairs leading to the crew quarters. Two men grabbed Mal by the arms and lifted him up. He found that his legs would barely withstand his weight, the blow to the head had disabled him something fierce. But the two men seemed to have no problem dragging him along behind Niska.

"Come, Mr. Reynolds. It is time to finish what we have started."

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Rafferty found himself pushing further and further ahead of the new recruit. He had a growing impatience for those who didn't know any better, those like Tucker. The boy thought that he was one of the big boys; that just because he had a shiny new badge and a weapon he was just as good as the others who had come before him. This wasn't the first abandoned ship Rafferty had investigated; he'd seen a few in his day. As much as he wanted to say it, it never got any easier. Most times they would come across one of these old ships and realize that a family had been left dead by space pirates, equipment failure, or even worse, Reavers.

"What do you think happened here?" He heard the young officer talking to him from behind and rolled his eyes again.

"Could have been anything. Maybe they just abandoned ship." He knew that wasn't the case, it rarely ever was. The Firefly was fully functioning and still had its life support systems in tact. There was no logical reason for anyone to abandon it, even if they were thieves or criminals.

"We haven't found any bodies yet. That's a good sign, right?" Tucker sounded nervous, fearful at that. His voice shook and it made Rafferty sigh in frustration. He ignored the question as he would a small child tugging at his pant leg and continued to investigate the corridor. Looking down at the floor, he noticed something. Squinting, he crouched down and stared at a rather large stain on the ground. "What is it?" Tucker stood behind him now. Rafferty reached his gloved hand down and touched the substance. He held it up to his visor and stared.

"Its blood. Not quite dry." Rafferty's eyes dimmed as his findings. It never felt good to know that people had been killed in that same place where he stood. He figured it was another aspect of the job he'd never get used to.

"You mean…" Tucker began his sentence but couldn't seem to find the words to end it. Rafferty looked up from his place on the ground and noticed the first in a series of doors. It had a sign stuck onto it, a sign that was smeared over in blood. He could barely recognize the words on it: Kaylee's Room.

"In there." He pointed to the hatchway and stood up. "That's where we'll find 'em."

"Find who?" Tucker asked, cautiously moving behind the superior officer.

Rafferty took a breath and put on his most composed expression. "The bodies."


	5. Signs of the End

Disclaimer : I do not own Serenity or her crew.

Notes: Sorry for the delay in updates. This fic requires much more time and effort then I originally imagined it would. Thank you for the comments and please continue to give me your thoughts, I enjoy reading them.

"Signs of the End"

Kaylee didn't go straight to her bunk, as the captain ordered. She knew something was wrong and she couldn't rest easy knowing that Serenity was in danger. She knew that the captain wouldn't tell her anything and would just end up pulling rank and sending her back to her bunk. She knew that someone would tell her though, if she pursued enough. She didn't have much time, but she made her way into Jayne's bunk quick enough to catch him in the act of getting Vera ready for battle.

He took one look at her face, the stubbornness mixed with fear that was etched into her features, and gave in. He told her that something about that BUN tyen-shung duh ee-DWAY-RO on the monitor irked him, that he knew the type because he was one. Kaylee corrected him, saying that he used to be that type before he became part of Serenity's family. Jayne smiled a true smile and, once he remembered the situation at hand, insisted that she stay with the Shepard in his bunk until this whole mess passed over. He also insisted that she take one of his best guns with her, just in case.

And she followed his advice to the end, until she heard the gunshots.

"Shepard…what was that?" Her voice quivered suggesting she already knew the answer. The Shepard looked at her with fear in his eyes and quickly looked away, obviously wanting so much to tell her that it wasn't what she thought it was. He cleared his throat and forced himself to look away from the top of his desk. He closed the Bible he had been glancing at in between his conversations with Kaylee and scooted his chair out to stand.

"That, Kaylee, is a sign of something very bad." He moved to the floor and reached under the bed. Kaylee watched him in curiosity until he pulled out a steel box with a lock on it. He then reached under his shirt and lifted the small silver cross that he never took off. "Forgive me." He whispered quietly before reaching into his pocket with his other hand to pull out a tiny silver key.

"Shepard?" Kaylee asked the unspoken question. The older man looked up at her and reached out to touch her arm in a comforting gesture.

"It will be alright Kaylee." He reached down and inserted the key into the lock. Two clicks later the lid popped up, just enough for him to lift it, and underneath was something that both of the crewmembers were very familiar with, but for very different reasons.

The Shepard ran his hands over the cold steel of the gun and then looked up at the hatch leading to the corridor. "Did I ever tell you, Kaylee, that I fought in a war once?" He took the gun out and opened the chamber, noticing that it was not loaded. He looked up at Kaylee. She had scooted back on the Shepard's bunk until she was against the wall and was hugging herself tightly. "I fought for a government agency before the civil war; we were a peacekeeping force then. There was a riot on a small moon; I believe it is now called Santho. Some of the settlers believed that their moon would be a much better place if they were to extinguish all of the lower class population. My battalion got there too late. They had exterminated hundreds of people in a matter of days." He loaded the bullets into the gun, picking each one up one by one and sliding it into the chamber with steady fingers.

Kaylee watched him intently, hanging on his every word. There were tears forming in her eyes, both for the people in the Shepard's story and for the crew of Serenity, who she feared for.

"There were women and men all over the roads. But what I remember most were the children. I remember thinking how innocent they were, how they had probably never committed a sin in their lives." He looked up at her now, his eyes on her but his thoughts far away. Suddenly it seemed that he snapped back to reality, and looked up at Kaylee with a sad smile. "The next day, I told my superior that I had completed my time with the battalion and would be pursuing other interests."

Kaylee sat forward, intrigued. "And they just let you go? Just like that?" Her eyes were wide in question. The Shepard shook his head and pushed the gun down into his belt.

"No. He didn't let me do anything. I did what I had to do." He smiled in remembrance. "But that was a long time ago, and I am a different person today."

There was brief silence between them. It wasn't tension filled though. It was almost peaceful, the calm before the storm.

"We should go check on them. What if they're…" Kaylee brought them back to the present, filled with dread and fear. The Shepard didn't respond at all, except to put his finger to his lips in a gesture of silence. A moment later Kaylee heard it too, the sound of faint footsteps clanking against Serenity's steel floors. There were voices too, but they were too faint to make out. Shepard Book moved to the doorway and held his gun pointed and ready. Kaylee reached into her coveralls and grasped the gun hidden underneath. She hadn't shown it to the Shepard; she hadn't shown it to anybody. It was her personal safety and the cold metal against her fingers both frightened and calmed her at the same time.

Suddenly, the voices became clearer and formed a conversation.

"Stop, here's as good a place as any to dump 'em." One male voice began.

"But Niska said to release them outside." A smaller meeker voice responded.

"And we will, after we confiscate some of them medical supplies. Some of that stuff will sell for a pretty penny on the black market. Come on."

Kaylee felt sick to her stomach when she heard the sound of two heavy loads being dropped on the floor outside. She looked over at the Shepard. His face was serious and he was poised for battle. The next order came in haste and caused the two crewmembers to falter in their stance.

"Hey, you two check out the passenger quarters. Remember, leave no one alive."

Kaylee gripped the gun harder in her hands and felt herself turn pale. The Shepard seemed less confident but didn't move from his place at the entrance.

"Come out come out wherever you are!" They heard one of the men shout down the corridor. This was followed by an evil sounding cackle and a moment later by a loud knocking. Kaylee and Book jumped back in response, but eventually realized that it was the door across from them that the men were knocking on. This didn't provide much relief of course.

The gunshots that followed made Kaylee jump back and pull out the weapon she had been concealing until now. She aimed it shakily at the hatchway, ready to fire. When the Shepard saw this he moved from his place at the entrance and towards Kaylee. He didn't mention the gun and, other then the look of surprise on his face, didn't react to it at all. Considering the situation, there didn't seem to be much point.

The next knock they heard was coming from outside of their own door.

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Tucker felt his hands shaking as he held his gun in position. He was standing next to Officer Rafferty outside of one of Serenity's crew quarters. He stared at the sign posted on the door and tried not to think about whom it may belong to. The shape of the letters and the variations of color reminded him of something that a child would create. Of course he tried to keep that thought as far from his mind as possible. The first thing they taught you at the academy was that emotions and government work do not mix and should never be combined. Tucker remembered everything he learned at the academy and that was why he graduated at the top of his class.

Unfortunately, this wasn't a classroom. He was in the real world now, working on an alliance ship and scavenging old abandoned ships for survivors or whatever else might peak alliance interest. Today it didn't look like there would be any survivors, a fact that would make most alliance officers happy hence there was less work involved. But Tucker couldn't shake the feeling that these people were actually just that, people. His teachers had said the same thing about him, saying that he would make a perfect alliance officer if it weren't for that annoying habit he had of putting faces to people. He had been trying really hard since then to shake that habit. And when Rafferty reached for the opening of the hatchway, Tucker shook his head and pushed the thoughts of people and children and families out of his mind for good.

Rafferty pulled open the door quickly and without hesitation. Tucker watched as he climbed down into the porthole, back to the ladder and face to the rest of the room. He held his gun out towards the open space of the room and searched the area. Tucker waited for him to drop down so that he could follow. He felt his impatience growing. He suddenly needed to witness this massacre; it was the only way he could ever detach himself enough to be like Rafferty and the general.

But the signal never came. In fact, it was Rafferty who came back up. Tucker looked at him in question.

"Nothing. There's no blood or evidence of struggle." The man seemed unfazed by this recent development. Tucker was confused and somewhat annoyed that he'd been led on.

"So, now what?" Tucker asked. Rafferty looked at him, eyes cold as steel.

"Now we move on." He turned around, as quickly as the words were out of his mouth, and began to move forward. Rafferty seemed slightly embarrassed that he hadn't been correct in his assumptions. Tucker just ignored the other man. He was busy feeling a mix of emotions run through him: anger, anxiety, anticipation, maybe even a hint of fear.

Tucker jumped when the generals voice came over their coms. Rafferty picked it up immediately, steady as ever.

"Rafferty here." He replied. There was a moment of static before the general spoke again.

"You boys better get down here. We've got bodies."

Tucker looked at Rafferty, who refused to meet his stare. Rafferty put the com. back in his belt and gestured towards the stairwell they had come from.

"You heard the man. Let's go."


	6. Now I Lay me Down to Sleep

-1Disclaimer: I do not own Firefly or the crew. I just like the play with them sometimes.

Notes: I apologize for the length of time between updates. These past seven days have been busy with cramming for my final exams, but I'm finally free and will be able to write much more often. I appreciate all of the reviews, I always look forward to hearing your opinions, and I hope that you all like this chapter.

"Now I Lay me Down to Sleep"

"_River! River wait!" _

When Simon heard about the new visitor coming on board Serenity, he knew that he had to get River into a safe place as quickly as possible. The rest of the crew didn't seem to be worried about it so much, but he knew better then that. He knew better then to let his guard down so easily.

"_River? Where are you?" _

When he saw the Captains face, the look of worry and indecision he wore just before he allowed the visitor aboard, his first instinct had been to take River's arm and keep her from leaving his sight. He'd thought of Kaylee for a brief second but quickly realized that she was surrounded by muscle bound men ready to take care of her, specifically Jayne. It wasn't that she didn't mean something to him. Kaylee meant the world to him. Her warm smile was what had drawn him onto Serenity in the first place, that first day when his stomach had been swimming with nerves despite the confident look upon his face. In the end that hadn't been enough for her, and he suspected that River had an inkling that it would end even before it started.

"_Mei Mei?"_

River seemed to have a lot of those intuitive feelings. It seemed, on the surface, that these feelings were the reasons behind many of their troubling predicaments. Simon suspected that many of the crew thought this, but lately he'd been seeing things differently. Maybe it wasn't Rivers feelings that caused them to get into trouble, maybe it was his mei mei's feelings that got them out of trouble in the end.

At least he hoped that was the case right now, when she was no where in sight and two gunshots had just exploded from downstairs in the cargo bay. He froze in his place next to Kaylee's bunk and felt a shiver run down his spine. Gunshots were nothing new on Serenity, but the fact that there were only two and there were no sounds of any scuffle going on worried him. He had a brief thought of wondering why he'd ever brought his sister upon this ship in the first place, surrounded by criminals and thieves. All he'd wanted was to keep her safe and get her away from those hwoon dahns who were hurting her. What he'd ended up doing was giving her a brand new family, a family that would stand up for her and put themselves at risk just to keep her safe. What he'd found on Serenity was a home.

As he neared the bridge a familiar voice made him stop in his tracks.

"She's going to leave. Mad scientist is taking her away. Time to go!" It was River, and she was hysterical.

"River!" He ran into the bridge and opened the doors. In front of him stood River. She paid Simon no attention, focusing her total self on the pilot's chair where Wash sat. The pilot turned to him and shot him a confused look.

"I'm thinking its time for another one of those pretty pink pills." Simon glanced from Wash back to River. She was standing completely still. Looking closely, Simon spotted something. There was a single tear falling from her eye and her eyes were sadder then he'd seen them in a long time.

"Mei Mei?" He approached her cautiously. "What's wrong?" He gently ran his thumb along her cheek, pushing away the single tear. Her eyes bore into him; they were so sad and lacking in something. Simon couldn't figure out what it was, there was something different in her this time. This wasn't one of her usual fits. Her lower lip trembled slightly and her eyes glazed over.

"Be prepared for it. Now I lay me down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep." Her eyes begged him to understand her ramblings. He wanted so badly, at that moment, to let her know that he did understand and he did care. He knew that she could feel things, feel them before anybody else could feel them. For once, he thought he might just give her a chance to express her feelings instead of just passing them off as just the schizophrenia.

"Tell me mei mei. What is going to happen? What should we be prepared for?" He whispered the words gently, trying to calm her. He felt Wash staring at him but paid him no attention.

"Um, sorry to interrupt and all but, huh?" Wash seemed thoroughly confused.

"I think there might be trouble." Simon explained this in a matter of fact sort of way. "I heard gunshots."

"Ta ma duh." Wash replied and proceeded to punch a few buttons on the control panel. Simon turned his attention back to River who, unlike Wash, seemed relieved. Simon suspected this was because someone had finally offered to listen to her, really listen.

"If I should die before I wake I pray the Lord my soul to take." She finished the prayer in her own whisper, her eyes shifting back and forth nervously. "I love you Simon." Suddenly she let out a playful yet sorrowful laugh. "Let's play hide and seek in the clouds! You're it!" Suddenly she tapped him on the shoulder and bolted toward the door.

"Oh, that girl, such a gas!" Wash commented, causing Simon to glare at him. "Don't you think you'd better find her before the bad guys decide to play too?" Wash stood from his place at the control panel and pulled a small handgun from underneath. Simon looked at him, mouth hanging open.

Wash replied to the expression with one sentence. "My wife's down there." Simon took a deep breath and turned towards the door.

"River!" He spoke in a harsh whisper, trying to project enough for her to hear him and no one else. When he heard her giggles echo throughout the hallway he raised his voice a decibel. "River!" He continued walking until he found himself in the dining area. It was completely empty and quiet, which made him nervous. It seemed like the dining room on Serenity was always full of people and noises, it was the heart of the ship.

He suddenly heard the noise of a pot falling in one of the cupboards. He quickly turned towards the sound only to feel something circular and cold pressed against his back. He didn't even have to turn around to know what was going on. He raised his hands in surrender before they could even speak.

"Guess you found me." He spoke in a defeated tone but still kept his cocky attitude. He heard the sound of someone coughing, it was a familiar sound. He knew the person but was afraid to turn around to look.

"Hello young man. I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting. Please let me introduce myself." Suddenly he was being spun around until he was facing a whole group of strangers with guns. Two of them were holding the captains arms. Simon met the mans' eyes for a moment. He had been badly beaten but it was nothing he hadn't seen before. There was a stubborn defiance in the mans eyes that made Simon want to smirk. Even in the more dire of circumstances, Mal never ceased to give up his stubborn pride.

The man speaking to him was old and wrinkled with an evil in his eyes that made Simon's skin crawl.

"My name is Adelei Niska, and your name is?" The man held out his hand in an attempt at formality. Simon found himself smirking at the gesture. He looked up at the old man and studied him. So this was Niska? This was the man who had tortured Mal and Wash. He didn't look like much in appearance, but Simon knew what people were capable of and he didn't doubt that this man was capable of just about anything.

"The man you're about to kill." This was his reply. He couldn't give out his name. He couldn't take the chance that it would sound some kind of bell in the old man's head and send him looking for the fugitives' little sister. He looked over at Mal, who showed no sign of disagreeing with his response. In fact, the man seemed almost proud of him. Mal flashed him a cocky smile and Simon just shook his head and looked down at his feet.

Niska moved around him with a sort of grace he could not describe. It was not elegant like Inara's grace, more like a lion awaiting the fall of his prey.

"I see. You are very, how do you say, truthful aren't you Mr. Tam? Or, shall I call you doctor?" He was staring at Simon with a look of humor mixed with insanity. His fingers casually rested on the side of his mouth and a small laugh escaped from his lips. When Simon didn't answer he narrowed his eyes. "You are not as, uh, clever as you may think doctor."

With one swift motion he slapped Simon across the face, sending the man down onto the floor. Simon tasted blood and hated it. He spit it out onto the floor, but not before one of Niska's men could stomp on his fingers so hard that he felt them break. Simon screamed out in pain, thoughts of his sister the only thing keeping him conscious. He heard sounds of Mal struggling against the other men in the background, then the sound of a gunshot.

"Now, you will tell me where your sister is." Niska said it as a statement, making it clear that he was done playing games. Simon fought to keep his eyes open, the pain nearly unbearable. He opened his eyes as wide as he possibly could and smiled a bloody grin up at the old man.

"My sister is…" He paused, losing his grin and taking deep hyperventilating breathes. "My sister is dead." He watched Mal's face contort from pain to confusion to sadness all in a matter of seconds. He watched Niska's haggard grin fall into an angry frown. He watched River's eyes silently close as she stood in the doorway, a bullet hole in her chest.

"Mei! Mei!" He shouted as loud as he could and rushed towards her drooping body. He felt the first bullet enter his chest and the next enter his abdomen. He reached Rivers body just in time for her heart to stop beating.

He felt the warmth of his own blood mixing with River's as he faded out of consciousness and entered a place filled with clouds and games of hide and seek.

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General Clive Adams was a man of truth and dignity. He believed in honoring those who were heroes and spitting on the graves of those who violated the letter of the law. There was black and there was white, but there was never gray. In General Adams world, there were the good and the decent and there were the bad and the disgraceful. Anyone in between was just a liar and would be classified in the latter category. This is why General Adams was a general working for the Alliance. He was good at this job and great at telling others how to do their jobs.

So walking onto the abandoned Firefly transport Serenity was just another routine operation for General Adams. He expected to find either a ship full of dead mothers, fathers, and children on their way to a new homestead or a crew of no good bandits looking for an easy way to make a living. Either way, there would be bodies. Either way, they would be dead. But this distinction, this categorical thought process, was what would determine whether he would sleep that night or not.

It hadn't taken him long to find the first one. She was a young woman of African decent he suspected. She'd been shot several times and then covered with a blanket. There were bloody handprints on the floor all around her. He suspected that someone had come to say their last goodbyes to this woman. He closed his eyes and prayed for a peaceful nights rest that he knew he would never achieve.

Looking up, he noticed another one. It was a large man who'd been shot many times. Some of the wounds were older then the others, suggesting that he hadn't died right away. He was lying just outside of an open hatchway with a gun tucked in his hand. To the left of him was another body, another large man. The man had long scraggily hair and had been shot once, square in the heart. It was a good shot if the general had ever seen one, a perfect shot. Only an experienced shooter could do something like that in one try.

Maybe he would be sleeping ok tonight after all.

He pulled out his com and spoke into it. "You boys better get down here, we've got bodies."

Noticing that the hatchway was wide open, he slowly lowered himself into it. Two more. The girl had been shot once in the abdomen, the older man twice in the chest. There was blood all over the walls and floor, suggesting that these two were not the only ones injured. He suspected that the man had wounded his attackers before his death. Kneeling down, the general took a closer look at the man. His clothing suggested that of a man of God, a good man at that. Around the room he found a Bible and a few other things that only a licensed Shepard would be in possession of.

The gun was not one of those things.

"General?" He heard the sound of Rafferty's voice outside of the hatch.

"Down here Rafferty."

When the two younger men stepped down into the hatch they were obviously taken aback. Rafferty not so much, the general had trained him well and he was learning about the dangers of letting his emotions get involved. The other, the rookie, was having a hard time staying upright. The general had brought him along for this very reason. The boy was a solid officer and would make a great general one day, he was sure of it, but he still had not learned how to keep his emotions in check.

The young men checked around the room and at the various bodies, while the general stayed with just one. He was a man of God and yet he was also a killer. The case the general found underneath the bed suggested that the Shepard was the owner of the small handgun, and he certainly knew how to use it judging by the amount of blood all over the walls.

Suddenly the world was not moving in the same way that it used to for General Clive Adams.


End file.
